Spring Cleaning with Kids

It is that time of year… spring cleaning, I know you feel me! And somehow, you’ve got to whip your house into shape. But I am a BIG proponent of having your kids help! Where else are they going to learn if you don’t teach them how to clean.

However, it can be hard to get them excited or keep them involved Here are some great ideas ans tasks so you can get the little ones involved. And bonus, cleaning is a great way to bring everyone together and make family memories as you wash away the winter grime and welcome the warmer weather!!

Today I am partnering with Find it at Home Depot to share some tips for spring cleaning with kids! (be sure to check out the link for other great ideas!)

MY LATEST VIDEOS

MY LATEST VIDEOS

1. Work together

While divide-and-conquer can be a great cleaning strategy, sending a child to do a task on their own might feel like a punishment to them, especially if you have to keep hounding them to finish the job or do it correctly. Instead, try teaming up to work on one area together. Give them a job within their reach (like dusting baseboards or wiping walls) while you work up higher.

2. Make it fun

Channel your inner Mary Poppins, toss in a spoonful of sugar “and *snap* the job’s a game!” Turn the task into a game by crowning a Cleaning Queen or King (with a dollar store crown) who gets to choose the next area to clean. As you purge your closet, keep the game going and play dress-up with your cast-offs. Put the kids on your shoulders (safely now!) to get the cobwebs from the corners and dust ceiling fans.

3. Crank the tunes

An upbeat song makes any task better. Our current favorite is the Happy song from Despicable Me 2. Take turns choosing the next song, or race to see if you can finish the current chore before the song is over.

4. Dance!

Once that music is on, move your body! There is nothing as fun as sweeping and dancing, so grab the new Swiffer Sweep and Trap and make your way around the house. The great thing about this Swiffer is you pick up the dirt, big and small. Swiffer Sweep & Trap uses rotating blades to pick up large particles and flicks them into a dirt bin. At the same time, the attached Swiffer Sweeper dry cloth traps dirt, dust and hair that brooms can leave behind. This innovative combination cleans up big and small messes in a single swipe. This helps get rooms clean and ready for any DIY project in no-time, even little kiddos can try it out… and believe me they love it! My kiddos want to push it around all day, and that is just fine by me, because they can’t help but clean when they use it!

5. Make it special

When you have young children, novelty makes everything amazing! Bring in something new, like kid-sized gloves or special Swiffer dusting “wands”. Get your cleaning garb on with a new apron (one of those cute little Home Depot Aprons they give to kids at monthly workshops would be so fun!) or a bandana for each family member. Let the little ones do things that they normally wouldn’t get to do, like using the spray bottles themselves or climbing up a step stool (under supervision) to dust or wash windows.

6. Bribery… it works!

Even as an adult, I sometimes need an incentive to make myself finish everything on my list. Set reasonable goals for what you want to accomplish, break it into manageable parts, and give yourself and your little helpers a reward for finishing each part. (Older kids can manage a larger reward at the end of a big day of cleaning.) Extra mom points for making a chart that you can put stickers on!

7. Work in spurts

You know how sometimes you get more cleaning done in your house in the 15 minutes before someone comes over than you do the rest of the week? Put that cleaning adrenaline to work and keep your little helpers engaged by working in shorter spurts. Clean as much as you can for 15 minutes, and then take a break. Rinse and repeat until your house is sparkling clean!

8. Nothing is too Small!

Don’t forget that little ones can be happy doing something small. Give them a dampened Bounty Paper towel, 2X more absorbent than other leading ordinary brands , and have them wipe off drawer fronts or surface clean their toys!

9. Let them help purge

A big part of spring cleaning is getting rid of the things that you don’t want, need, or love anymore. Parting with toys can be hard for little ones, but often just having a say in the matter helps ease the pain. Set a goal for how many toys they need to get rid of (8 toys, or this box full) and help them work through what they want to keep and what they want to get rid of. For toys in working condition, donate them instead of dumping them in the trash, and talk with your kids about how happy another child will be to play with that toy that they don’t play with anymore.

Once you’ve narrowed down the toys, it is time to change winter clothes out for summer clothes. Have them help separate winter clothes that are still usable for next year. Be sure to give those clothes a wash to avoid set in stains. I like to use Gain flings, not only does it smell DIVINE, but it also has Oxiclean which helps to remove hard to clean stains! My kiddos LOVE to help with laundry. I let them load the laundry tub, and throw in a fling. I set it to start and then they can help move it to the dryer after!

10. Be positive

Even if they are having a hard time listening and working try to stay positive. Help them to do one thing that has a truly noticable change! Something as simple as letting them spray the rugs, furnishings or the air with Febreze, Air Effects eliminates tough odors, and leaves behind a light, fresh scent. They will notice that change immediately, you can’t help but be excited about the wonderful fresh smell of things, and they will feel like they helped out, and want to do more next time… little victories!

Little ones may not always do exactly what you want, and often times having them help actually makes things a little bit more work. But if you can stay positive and keep things fun, you can create family memories that they’ll love, instead of remembering that time that mom melted down during spring cleaning.

And Great News, if you wanna try some new spring cleaning products, I am happy to say that we are hosting a giveaway! One luck winner will receive:

A $100 Gift Card to Home Depot, Bounty Paper Towel, Mr Clean Magic Erasers, dome fresh smelling Febreze and easy to use Gain Flings! Click on the Rafflecopter link to enter. Comments left on this post do NOT count as an entry.

Related

Remodelaholic is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Please see our full disclosure here.

About Cassity

Cassity started Remodelaholic with her husband, Justin, to share their love for knocking out walls together. She is an interior designer, wife, and mother of two. She and Justin have remodeled three homes from top to bottom and are working on their fourth. Making a house a home is her favorite hobby.

Comments

I love these tips. While I don’t have little ones, it’s good to think about purging and cleaning even the little stuff myself. Also, I’m loving that rug in the last photo. Is it recent? Please share more info! Thanks!

We love hearing from fellow Remodelaholics, so let us know what you like about this and leave any questions below in the comments. If you have followed a tutorial or been inspired by something you have seen here, we would love to see pictures! Submit pictures here or by messaging us over on Facebook.

This blog is about DIY at its finest. We are obsessed with it and so are you, so while we're working and have nothing to show you of our own projects we show off yours. So submit your projects! More About Us…

Categories

Remodelaholic is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Please see our full disclosure here.